Mary J. Blige [ tickets ] and Jay-Z [ tickets ] will tackle a co-headlining tour together this spring, with the soul diva and the rapper hitting 25 North American cities over the next few months.

The first leg of the tour--which represents Jay-Z's first arena dates since his pre-"retirement" 2004 Jay-Z and Friends Tour--kicks off March 22 in Miami. The initial segment of the tour consists of ten dates through mid-April, with more shows to be announced in the coming weeks, according to promoters.

Tickets for the initial leg go on sale to the general public Feb. 15; Citi cardmembers will have access to pre-sale tickets beginning Feb. 13 through Citi's Private Pass program website.

"The (songs) we're playing are the soundtracks to people's lives," Jay-Z said in a statement. "We've poured our hearts out many a night in the studio and look forward to going one step further on stage."

Jay-Z, who first paired with Blige on the 1996 hit single "Can't Knock the Hustle," returned from retirement in 2006 with his "Kingdom Come" album, following it last year with his current disc, "American Gangster."

Released in November, "American Gangster"--the performer's 10th studio effort--became Jay-Z's10th No. 1 album, selling more than 400,000 copies in its first week in stores.

Blige's most recent release, December's "Growing Pains," kicked off 2008 in the No. 1 slot on The Billboard 200 chart, with the album selling more than 800,000 copies during its first two weeks in stores.

The album, Blige's eighth studio set in a recording career that dates back to the early '90s, features an impressive roster of production talent, including Tricky Stewart, The Neptunes and Norwegian studio aces Stargate (Tor Erik Hermansen and Mikkel S. Erikse).

Between them, Jay-Z and Blige have gathered 12 Grammys and sold more than 70 million albums, according to a press release.